Following the breakup of the Misfits and the dissolution of Samhain, frontman Glenn Danzig formed the eponymous Danzig in 1987 and released their debut album the following year. Danzig and his bandmates - guitarist Tommy Victor (Prong), bassist Steve Zing (ex-Samhain) and drummer Johnny Kelly (ex-Type O Negative) - are now celebrating the 25th anniversary with a headlining tour. At 58, Danzig still has the voice and the charisma to pull off the old material, as made evident by the October 19th stop at The Palladium in Worcester, MA.

After opening with newer cuts "SkinCarver" and "Hammer of the Gods," Danzig informed the crowd, "It's going to be all old songs from here on out," which was met with enthusiastic cheers. The band then went into "Twist of Cain," the opening track from their self-titled debut. From there, Danzig and company continued mostly in chronological order, playing favorites from Danzig, Danzig II: Lucifuge and Danzig III: How The Gods Kill, including "Her Black Wings," "How the Gods Kill" and "Dirty Black Summer."

Although the tour was conceived to commemorate 25 years of Danzig, fans were also excited to celebrate Danzig's former group. Danzig enlisted Misfits guitarist Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein to join the band for a handful of Misfits songs. The towering Doyle stomped onto the stage like Godzilla on Tokyo, and he and Danzig tore through seven classics: "Death Comes Ripping," "Vampira," "I Turned Into a Martian," "Skulls," "London Dungeon," "Bullet" and "Last Caress."

The crowd clearly loved every second of it, as this portion of the set garnered the loudest singalongs, the biggest circle pits and the most crowd surfers of the night. Danzig seemed to feed off the audience's enthusiasm, even going on the barricade to sing along with fans a few times. Doyle is an absolute beast, physically wailing on guitar harder than anyone I've ever seen. The songs may be 30 years old, but their unrelenting energy is timeless.

After Doyle exited, Danzig carried on with "Soul on Fire" and the band's biggest hit, "Mother," before leaving the stage. They returned a moment later for an encore, at which point Danzig gave the crowd the choice of what they would play. They settled on "She Rides." Following that, Doyle came back out to play "Astro Zombies" with the band to end the night on a high note.

Danzig told the crowd that he's taking some time off the road following the run, presumably to work on new material, so this tour is a fitting send-off. Of course, these shows also bring up the possibility of long-gestured Misfits reunion. It seems like a no-brainer to fans, and Doyle said he would like to do it, so hopefully Danzig and Jerry Only can work out their differences and make it a reality. But even if it never happens, the Danzig 25th Anniversary Tour serves as a great reminder of why several generations have been and continue to be inspired by the man they call Danzig.

Danzig setlist

SkinCarver
Hammer of the Gods
Twist of Cain
Am I Demon
Her Black Wings
Tired of Being Alive
Blood and Tears
Dirty Black Summer
How the Gods Kill
Death Comes Ripping (Misfits)
Vampira (Misfits)
I Turned Into a Martian (Misfits)
Skulls (Misfits)
London Dungeon (Misfits)
Bullet (Misfits)
Last Caress (Misfits)
Soul on Fire
Mother
-----
She Rides
Astro Zombies (Misfits)